PAY no mind to any of those hypey whispers that Percy Jackson just might be the next Harry Potter.

On the evidence of his first big-screen outing, the young demigod hero (from the best-selling series of books by Rick Riordan) might have his work cut out simply making it to the sequel stage.

Which is not to say Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief is by any means a dud effort.

Proven all-ages auteur Chris Columbus (director of the first two Potter flicks, not uncoincidentally) knows exactly how to press the buttons of his target audience.

The Lightning Thief leans heavily on its bustling collection of effects-driven sequences, many of which pit the teenage title character against beasts and freaks more than twice his size.

Unfortunately – after experiencing some moderate exhilaration – most viewers will notice a sobering sense of sameness to all the fierce battles and close scrapes.

The big hook of the Percy Jackson books is how Riordan has successfully welded ancient Greek mythology to modern American life.

The film could have taken more time to familiarise its audience with the concept, but it remains a catchy enough idea for the duration.

Get this. Thousands of years after their heyday, the Greek gods are still very much in business in the 21st century.

Though you won’t find their Mount Olympus HQ anywhere near downtown Athens.

These days, King Zeus (Sean Bean), his seafaring brother Poseidon (Kevin McKidd) and the rest of the gang can be found on the 600th (yes, 600th!) floor of the Empire State Building in NYC.

As the story begins, Zeus is chucking a wobbly because someone has swiped his
lightning bolt.

Furthermore, he points the finger of blame squarely at Poseidon’s mortal son, apparently living his life as a normal kid somewhere in the American heartland.

That would be 15-year-old Percy Jackson (played by Logan Lerman), who is blissfully unaware of his exalted status as a demigod.

Until he discovers his best friend (Brandon T. Jackson) is a satyr (half man, half goat) and his secret bodyguard. And his schoolteacher (Pierce Brosnan) is a centaur (half horse) and an instructor in the demigod fighting arts.

After a short stay in demigod boot camp – which looks a lot like where Kevin Sorbo’s TV Hercules used to live – Percy is on his way to the underworld ruled by Hades (Steve Coogan) to sort out the missing lightning situation.

Also along for the ride is Percy’s demi-girlfriend, Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario), daughter of Athena.

All in all, the movie happens along in a busy yet unremarkable fashion – save for the very welcome intrusion of a wonderful Uma Thurman as Medusa, the snake-haired siren whose gaze can turn a gawker to stone.